Not Alone
by este angel
Summary: Hitsugaya is sent to the Karakura to check out some mysterious reiastu, but he can't seem to stop thinking about Karin. What will happen when they meet? Rated T just in case. HitsuKarin with no other pairings.
1. The Dream

This is a short fic about HitsuKarin. I hope that when its done that it will be around 10,000-15,000 words. Anyways just read it and review! Thanks.

**Disclaimer:** The owner of Bleach is Tite Kubo, not me :[

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_"Shiro-chan!" A voice called out._

_"Momo?" Toshiro asked._

_"No, silly. It's me."_

_Toshiro's vision slowly appeared and he found himself staring at a girl with short black hair and eyes the color of the night sky. She was looking back at Toshiro, a small smile playing along the corners of her lips._

_"Karin," he said._

_"Yeah."_  
_"How do you know my nickname?"_

_"What do you mean? I've always know it!"_

_"You have?" He thought for a moment. "OK."_

_She frowned. "Why are you always so serious? It's no fun when you are."_

_Toshiro blinked, surprised. "I'm sorry…"_

_"It's OK."_

_"So, what do you want to do?"_

_"How about we look at the stars?"_

_"But it's the middle of the say. You can't see stars in the middle of the day. Did you just want to watch the clouds instead?"_

_Karin's brow furrowed. "But it's night. Look up!"_

_Toshiro complied. He was surprised to discover that the sky was now black and star glimmered in it; the little specs throwing light on the ground. So it was night. He could have sworn that just a moment ago it had been bright and sunny with clouds drifting lazily though the bright blue oasis. Maybe he was wrong though._

_Karin grabbed his hand and pulled him down to the soft grass where they lay, side by side, just watching the sky._

_"This hurts, Toshiro. Why does it hurt?"_

_Toshiro looked over at Karin, wondering what on Earth she was talking about. He rolled over on his stomach to see her more clearly._

_"What hurts, Karin-chan?"_

_Karin stared straight ahead and Toshiro wasn't even sure if she heard the question. She must have though, because she began talking. But when she did, there was no emotion behind her voice._

_"My body hurts."_

_"It hurts?"_

_She nodded. "It feels like it's on fire, burning and shriveling up."_

_Toshiro shuddered at the description. That was disgusting!_

_"Karin." He was at a loss of what to say._

_"But you know what hurts the most?"_

_"What?" His voice was weak._

_"Right here." She rolled over and touched her hand to his heart. "It feels… cold. And heavy. It hurts, Shiro-chan."_

_"Right here?" Toshiro places his own hand on her heart, but recoiled almost immediately. What he had put his hand on was warm and wet. Blood? He looked down at his hand. Sure enough, a sticky, red liquid was covering it. Tentatively, he put his hand back over her heart. When he did, he realized that what he was touching was her actual heart, live and beating. Repulsed, he went to go draw his hand back once more, but Karin grabbed his arm, stopping him._

_"Toshiro."_  
_Her heart began beating wildly, frantically._

_"Karin. Karin! KARIN!" Toshiro yelled._

_Suddenly, her heart went still._

_"Noo! KARIN! KARIIIN!" Toshiro cried, violently shaking her body, desperate to wake her up. But her body stayed as limp as a doll, flailing as he shook her. His body convulsed, knowing that she was never going to rise. He stared into her face, into her cold, lifeless eyes._

_"K-Karin."_

_Arm quivering, he pulled her body close to his own. Unable to stop himself, a tear squeezed out of his eye, rolled down his face, and dripped into Karin's lifeless hand._

_"Karin…"_

_-.-.-.-.-.-.-_

Hitsugaya's eyes slowly opened, but his vision was still blurring.

"Karin?" He murmured.

His eyesight returned to normal and he looked around at his surrounding. He was sitting in his office, slumped over a pile of nearly completed paperwork. He must have just fallen asleep while doing it last night. That means that all he just saw… was a dream. His face hardened. Although he was glad that the scene was just a nightmare, it still shouldn't have happened. He had met Karin in the Real World, and they had become friends, but nothing more. So why was he dreaming of her, a simple, human girl? Why was he constantly seeing her dying? And more importantly, why was he always so devastated when she did? Toshiro did feel different when he first met her, more complete you could say. He had always just assumed it had meant that they had a connection, but could it be something more? Could their souls have been connected by love? No. Hitsugaya pushed this off and attempted to back to his paperwork.

"Taiiichouuu!" Matsumoto sung falling through the office door.

Hitsugaya glared at his subordinate, a vain twitching on his forehead. "Are you drunk?"

"I think I might be," she slurred.

Another vein twitch.

"It's only 10 in the morning."

"Silly Taichou. The middle of the day is the best time to drink!" The tipsy lieutenant giggled. "It's so much more fun!"

Hitsugaya was about to make a snappy retort when Matsumoto fell over. His eyes widened a fraction and he blinked. Peering over his desk, he looked at her. She was lying on the floor, strawberry blonde hair spilled out all around her, eyes closed. Was she… sleeping? Hitsugaya stared at his vice-captain, visibly displeased. He moved to wake her up and force her to start doing her paperwork, when he glanced at the clock. He was going to have to leave for a captains meeting in 5 minutes anyways. Might as well let her sleep until her came back. Sighing, he gently lifted her into his arms and carried her over to the couch. Once he put her down, she curled up, murmuring in her sleep. Hitsugaya smiled. As much as his lieutenant got on his nerves, he still cared about her.

Looking at the clock again, he walked over to the door. It couldn't hurt to leave a few minutes early. He was going to need a couple moments to get over that last dream anyways. He had been having them more frequently and they had been getting increasingly disturbing. Like that last one. He shuddered, and kept walking. Upon arriving at the meeting, he hurried inside and took his place next to Kyoraku. Soon after, Captain Commander began speaking. Hitsugaya tried to pay attention, but he found his mind wandering throughout the whole meeting. Towards the end, Captain Commander addressed him.

"Lastly, Hitsugaya-taichou, there have been some reports of unusual reiatsu near Karakura Town."

Hitsugaya stiffened, all traces of boredom gone. Karakura Town almost always meant trouble, and that's were Karin lives.

"This is most likely nothing serious, but I am going to send you to check it out anyways because as you are aware, Karakura Town has a very high spirit particle concentration."

Hitsugaya nodded.

"So, Toushiro Hitsugaya-taichou, I am going to send you, Rangiku Matsumoto-fukutaichou, 3rd seat Madrame Ikkaku, and 5th seat AyasegawaYumichika to observe Karakura until you find the source of the reiatsu. I will be expecting reports when you make progress. Can you handle this?"

"Hai, Captain Commander Yamato."

"Very well. You are dismissed!"

The captains walked away, Hitsugaya moving especially fast, already sending hell butterflies to the members of his team: Matsumoto, Ikkaku, and Yumichika. He felt a small relief, but he didn't want to admit why to anyone. He knew that he cared about Karin on some deep, unknown level that even he didn't understand. Nothing about Karin made sense to him anymore. Shaking his head, he strode off to his division. When he arrived, he was surprised to find Ikkaku and Yumichika already waiting for him there. Even more surprising, Matsumoto was standing and looking very sober.

"Ooh Taichou! I just can't wait to go shopping in the Real World! The clothes there are so cute!"

Yumichika smiled. I have heard that also. I just hope they appreciate true beauty there."

"I just care if that bastard we're going to fight is tough or not." Ikkaku smirked.

So that's why they all came as fast as they could. How childish could they be? Hitsugaya went to remind them that they were going to the Real World because they had work to do, a mission. But before he could, Matusmoto interrupted him.

"Ne, Taichou. Is that cute Kurosaki girl you were stalking going to be there?"

Yumichika and Ikkaku looked up. Captain Hitsugaya stalking a girl?

"Matsumoto!" Histugaya bellowed, his cheeks flushing a light pink. Why was he blushing?

"I am not stalking anyone." His voice was so hard and his eyes were so angry that Matsumoto didn't tease him. Even she knew her boundaries.

"Hai. I just can't wait to get to the stores!" She flashed everyone bright smiles.

Hitsugaya shut his eyes, still angry with his subordinate. He hadn't been stalking Karin that day, just following her to try and figure out why she made him feel so… whole. But now Ikkaku and Yumichika were going to think that he liked a human girl which he didn't… right? He knew that this wasn't some stupid crush, but what if it was love? Pushing this to the back of his mind, Hitsugaya addressed the group.

"We should go. Yamato has arranged a portal for us."

They all nodded and followed him. Soon, they would arrive in the world of the living.

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So what did you think? Review it!

I am still wondering which you guys like better: 1st person or 3rd person.

Also check out some of my other stories please


	2. The Source and Dinner

OK, here's the next chapter. I only briefly proofread it so if there are any mistakes, I apologize. Anyways read, rate, and review. C:

**Disclaimer: **I unfortunately do not own Bleach; Tite Kubo does.

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Hitsugaya sighed. They had been in the World of the Living for not even an hour, and already Matsumoto had run off. She claimed that she was going to go looking for any disturbances in the town but Hitsugaya knew that she had probably just left so she could start her shopping. At least Yumichika and Ikkaku had left also, so he wouldn't be bothered by them. Yawning, he wandered down the street, his senses up and looking for any unusual flare of reiatsu. However, his mind kept wandering to a short, dark haired girl. Each time it did, he would refocus and tell himself that she was just a friend and nothing more. And then he would continue to search for disturbances. He looked for quite some time but still: nothing. Annoyed, Histugaya looked down at his watch. It was already 2:30 meaning that he had been at this for 3 hours! Glancing around, he noticed his surrounding for the first time. If he remembered correctly, he was about 2 blocks away from the clinic that the Kurosaki family runs. Sighing again, he turned to head towards the center of town where he knew Matsumoto would be waiting for him. However, hearing footsteps he turned to look over his shoulder at who was behind him. It was…. Kurosaki Ichigo?

"Oi! Toshiro!" Ichigo quickly caught up with Hitsugaya.

"That's Hitsugaya-taichou to you!"

Ichigo just looked down at Hitsugaya and grinned.

"Onii-chan! Wait for me!" Yuzu's somewhat shrill voice called out. She appeared at the top of the hill, a pout on her lips. When she was Hitsugaya her face brightened and skipped down the hill. "Are you one of Onii-chan's friends?"

"Uh, I suppose you could call us that…"

Yuzu flashed a bright smile. "Well then, you have to stay for dinner! Hmm… what am I going to make?" Her face became serious. "What do you like to eat?" She asked Histugaya.

But before he could reply, another person climbed over the ridge of the hill and called out to her siblings. "Ichi-nii! Yuzu! What are you guys…" She trailed off when she noticed Hitsugaya. "Toshiro?" She asked.

"Hello, Karin"

It was so weird to finally be seeing her in person after all the nights he had dreamed of her. But here she was, staring at him, as if she couldn't believe he was here either.

"Karin. Yuzu. You two go back to the house. I just need to talk to Toshiro for a moment."

'_Hitsugaya-taichou,_' Hitsugaya thought, gritting his teeth.

"Demo, Onii-chan," Yuzu began, but Karin cut her off.

"Let's go, Yuzu."

"Don't forget I invited you to dinner, Toshiro-chan!"

"You invited him to dinner?" Karin's voice sounded annoyed.

"Yep! And he said he would come too!"

'_Did not_,' Hitsugaya thought before he realized how childish it was to think that.

"Yuzu, have you ever realized that just…" Karin and Yuzu's bickering voices slowing grew fainter.

"So?" Kurosaki asked. It was obvious he was asking why Soul Society had sent a captain to Karakura Town.

"It's nothing really; just some unusual reiatsu. They just sent me in case it was something bigger which is not very likely."  
Kurosaki nodded, but he was still frowning. "I'll let you know if I notice anything of interest."

Hitsugaya gave a small smile. "Arigato."  
Ichigo turned and looked at him. "So are you coming tonight?"

"Umm…"

"It's fine if you don't, just don't blame me when Yuzu starts crying because she thinks that you hate her."

Hitsugaya's face hardened. That damn Ichigo. He really knew how to get people to do things that they didn't want to do.

"Fine," he grumbled.

Ichigo smiled. "Arigato. This will make Yuzu really happy." He turned to leave. "I have to go work at the clinic because one of the doctors is on vacation. Just come by at around 7, OK?"

"Hai," Toshiro responded, and then he, too, walked away. As he strolled back to the center of town, he thought about Ichigo. He really cared about his sisters, which was nice to know because it meant that Karin would always be safe so long as he was around.

"Taiichouu!" Matsumoto enveloped Hitsugaya in a huge hug that knocked all the air out of him.

"What are those?" He asked gesturing to the bright bags she was clutching.

"I just did a little shopping," she replied. But before he could scold her for not performing her duties, she began speaking again. "So I went to Urahara's shop today and he told me that he has some information for you. So we should head there now."

Hitsugaya nodded. "Did you tell Ikkaku and Yumichika?"

"Hai. They should be there already."

"Good. Let's go."  
When Hitsugaya and Matsumoto arrived at Urahara's shop, they were surprised by Tessai who immediately whisked open the door.

"Is something wrong?" Hitsugaya asked.

"Not wrong per say," Urahara replied, stepping out from behind Tessai's back. His expression was hidden behind his fan, as usual. "We do have a bit of a problem though. I figured out what the source of the mysterious reiatsu is."  
"How is that a problem?"

"You'll see. Now follow me." Urahara started walking farther into his store, eventually reaching one of the back rooms. Sliding open the door, he revealed that Ikkaku and Yumichika were already sitting there, slumped over a table. Seeing the captain, they straightened up.

"You're finally here Hitsugaya-taichou! We've been waiting forever," Ikkaku called out.

Yumichika nodded in agreement. "It's not beautiful to arrive late you know."

Ignoring their jeers, Hitsugaya turned to Urahara. "What is your news that is so urgent?"

"Take a seat. This may require a little explanation," he replied.

Hitsugaya and Matsumoto sat down and Ururu hurried over with a tray of drinks. "Here you go." Her voice was shy and quiet. Matsumoto smiled at her and the girl looked down nervously.

"So," Urahara began. "As I'm sure you are all aware, I am the one who preformed the Hollowfication on Kurosaki Ichigo in order for him to retain his life and shinigami powers." There was general nodding. "Well I have studied his reiatsu and am quite aware of how it reacts; giving me a vague understanding of what Visored reiatsu is like in general. Just keep that in mind as I tell you this story.

"It began last Friday afternoon when the shinigami stationed here in Karakura Town was going to be relieved of his position. He kindly let me know ahead of time, so I could be aware in case any Hollows came and I needed to take care of them before his replacement came. Well it happened that one did appear, in a public park, too. Seeing as there might have been lots of human souls there, I hurried off to kill the Hollow. However when I got there, there was no Hollow. No one was hurt, but the park was ruined so I choose to modify everyone's memory to keep it simple. I assumed that it was the replacement shinigami who had defeated it, but when I asked him later, he was completely clueless to what I was talking about. This made me suspicious of how a human could defeat a Hollow, but I have seen it happen before so it didn't bother me too much. In fact, I forgot about it until this morning.

"The mysterious reiatsu spiked and I was reminded how familiar it seemed. I realized that it was very close to Kurosaki Ichigo's. That's when I made the connection between the reiatsu and the human defeating the hollow. It made me think 'what if for some reason, the hollow and human joined together?' I ran a few tests and that almost one hundred percent confirmed it. Of course there is some doubt, but it is the most logical and likely solution."

The four shinigami looked at each other. Never once had they heard Urahara talk so much. So much in fact, it seemed suspicious, like he was trying to cover something with a lot of lies. Could there be some part of the story he was excluding?

"So this natural Visored, will it still retain its human form?"

"Most likely. My theory is that the hollow is being suppressed and the flares of reiatsu are when the human loses control even momentarily."

"So then is the Visored dangerous?"

"It's hard to tell…"

Hitsugaya stared at Urahara for a long time, trying to decide what part the shopkeeper was lying about. Eventually he gave up. "I'm going to inform Yamato-taichou of this."  
The others agreed. Hitsugaya walked into another one of the back rooms that had a huge screen covering the left wall. It flickered to life and the old Captain-Commander's face filled the screen. After briefly informing his superior of what Urahara had told him, Hitsugaya glanced down at his watch.

Geez. It was already 6:37. He should leave for the Kurosaki's now just in case his sense of direction failed him. Frowning, Hitsugaya strode out of Urahara's shop and down the road. He was going to have stop thinking about this mysterious reiatsu; he had more important things to think about. Things like how to get through dinner unscathed.

.

.

.

"Ne, Toshiro-chan –"

"I think you've asked Toshiro enough questions, Yuzu."

"Demo, Karin-chan!"  
Hitsugaya blocked all this out and just concentrated on eating one bite after another, trying to get through this meal. The food was great actually, but he felt awkward like he was intruding into some private life that he shouldn't be a part of. Maybe it was the way they treated each other so casually. After all, Hitsugaya was used to his own strict district where everyone addresses each other formally. It might have also been how Yuzu and her father, Isshin, were so happy and simple to read. It made Hitsugaya uncomfortable how they displayed their emotions so openly because it makes one wonder if the happiness is faked.

"Toshiro-chan, what did you think of the rice cakes?" Yuzu's voice startled him.

"It was delicious. Thank you for inviting me."  
Yuzu beamed. "You can come tomorrow, too!"

Hitsugaya must have looked pained because Ichigo laughed before addressing his sister.

"Maybe Toshiro would like to eat with his other friends sometimes, too, Yuzu."

"Demo, Onii-chan, he always looks so hungry!" Yuzu pouted.

"Uh, Yuzu? I have to go now." Karin quietly interrupted.

"Oh are you going to…" Yuzu began to ask but trailed off when Karin shot her a meaningful glance, her eyes as sharp as daggers.

Isshin looked back and forth between the two sisters, suspicious. Suddenly, he sprang out of his chair and fell against a large picture of his wife that was plastered to the wall. "Mother!" He cried. "Ever since the girls have gotten older they don't tell me anything! Why can't I be to cool dad they always turn to?"

Fervently ignoring her father, Karin pushed back her own chair and stood up. "I'll be back by 11," she called over her shoulder as she grabbed her jacket and raced out the back door.

"I suppose I should leave as well," Hitsugaya said, seizing his opportunity.

Yuzu nodded seriously. "I'll go to the kitchen and get some leftovers for you to bring home."

Hitsugaya went to protest but Yuzu entered the kitchen anyways. Slowly standing up, he walked over to the door, waiting for Yuzu. As he did, Isshin stopped crying and talking to the picture. It was hard to believe that he used to have captain level shinigami powers. Sighing, Hitsugaya tapped him foot, impatient. As if she had read his mind, Yuzu skipped up and handed him a large bag brimming with food and tied with a bow.

"Thanks for dinner and all the extra food; I really appreciate it. So, um, where did Karin head off to just now?" He asked, trying to sound as casual as he could manage.

"She went out with her boyfriend, of course!" Yuzu giggled.

Hitsugaya took a step back. Karin had a boyfriend? Fumbling for the doorknob, he bid Yuzu goodnight and backed out of the house. The cool night air felt good and calming against his skin. He walked down the driveway and before he thought about where he was going, he started running.

The wind pushed at his face and he was finally able to lose himself in thought. After quite some time, he slowed down in front of an unnamed park. The grass looked so soft and comfortable, so he lay down on it and gazed up at the stars. This felt so nostalgic and familiar. Soon, Toshiro figured out why: this was just like the dream he had the night before coming here to the Real World. Only one thing was missing…

"Karin…," he thought. But it was just wishful thinking. She was after all, taken. They were still friends, but just not in the way Hitsugaya wanted them to be. Sighing, he rolled on his side and closed eyes. Perhaps if he had been more alert he would have noticed what was happening in the woods surrounding him.

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So what did you think? Leave a review telling me, and also message me if you have any comments or concerns that you don't want to share in reviews. More will be coming soon!


	3. A Wrongful Death

Hey! So I know that it has been too long since I last updated, and I apologize. The next one will hopefully be sooner. Anyways, this chapter needs no extra explanation. Hopefully, the wait was worth this chapter... Enjoy!

**Disclaimer:** Bleach is in no way mine.

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"Taichou!" Matsumoto's voice rang out, loud and steady.

Hitsugaya's eyes flew open. He must have fallen asleep while lying on the grass for quiet some time because when he looked up, the moon was a lot higher in the sky from when he saw it before his nap. But that wasn't what worried Hitsugaya. The air around him felt different, almost as if it was denser that normal air which could only mean one thing: the Visored was active.

"Matsumoto," Hitsugaya called out with authority. "Have you discovered the source yet?"

The vice captain shook her head firmly. "It's weird, Taichou. We tried using some of Urahara's tracking equipment to find a location, but it couldn't even pick up a rough estimate of where the Vaizard is. Urahara said this had never happened before and it was unusual, but that it was probably just a technical fault. Yet I couldn't help but get the feeling it was something more."

Hitsugaya nodded; he was glad that his lieutenant was so open with him. "Shall we go look for it ourselves then?"

Matsumoto agreed, but just as they were setting off the reiatsu began spiking uncontrollably, making it harder to trace. This seemed serious. Exchanging urgent glances, Hitsugaya and Matsumoto pushed forwards, desperately trying to find the creature. However, shortly into the pursuit, the reiatsu began growing weaker and fainter. With one final enormous spike of pure human reiatsu, the forest was still again.

Hitsugaya halted and turned to look at his vice captain. "We should head back to Urahara's and see how he advises continuing. Hopefully, he will have some sort of lead or an improved tracking device."

Matsumoto nodded, so resuming the silence, Hitsugaya started shunpoing back to the shop. Upon arriving, Ikkaku slid open the door, a huge smile lurking on his face.

"What?" Hitsugaya snapped at him. "What are you smiling?"

"Isn't it obvious? That's one tough bastard were going up against."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, whoever it is managed to surpass the hollow even after it had almost gained complete control. That takes a powerful mindset and some serious guts which is just the qualities that I would want in an opponent."

"Ikkaku, this isn't the time to be saying that. We need to assess the situation and act based on our conclusions. You can't want the fight all for your own; we need to use the best strategy for defeating it." Hitsugaya scolded, although Ikkaku did have a point. This Visored could be very dangerous. He just hoped it wouldn't have to come down to a one on one fight, despite what Ikkaku desired. Just as he was thinking this, Urahara stepped into view, looking down at a small box, a deep frown on his lips.

"Is something wrong, Urahara?" Hitsugaya asked.

"Yes and no. This box can be used to find the source of reiatsu after it is fed a small sample. I gave it some of the Visoreds but for some reason, it didn't work. This could easily be explained through technical error, but I think its something different. When the human was gaining control over the hollow, then its reiatsu was more human, and vice versa. Given this information, it will be almost impossible to track it because its reiatsu will be changing dramatically."

"That will indeed be a problem."

"There's something more though. I think that a human may have died tonight."

"What makes you say that?" Hitsugaya asked as his stomach clenched. Although it was only one human, it was still one innocent life that was gone on his watch.

"I only say that because of the particular way the reiatsu spiked. There was a second, weaker spike which was hidden in those of the powerful Visored. I recorded it in case you wanted to see for yourself?"

"No, it's fine. Should we report this to Soul Society?"

"I suppose you should. Tell them to look for newly arrived soul with fairly high spirit particle concentration. The one that died today had high but undeveloped reiatsu."

Hitsugaya nodded but his insides recoiled: undeveloped reiatsu meant that it was a kid that died tonight. ""I'll be back in a moment." Ducking out, he left Ikkaku and Urahara standing alone in the entrance.

"So," Ikkaku said.

Urahara looked up at him. "Yes?"

"Who is it?"

"Who is who?"

"Who is the Visored? I know you know who it is."

"Why would you come to such interesting conclusions?"

"Just the way you act and talk."

"You must be mistaken."

"Fine, don't tell me. Just remember that one person died tonight. If you hold your silence then you never know how many more might go the same way."

Urahara grimaced. "Don't say it like that."

Scoffing, Ikkaku walked out of the shop calling over his shoulder, "I'm going to look for Yamachica. If Hitsugaya-taichou asks just tell him that."

Urahara nodded, and although Ikkaku couldn't see him he just kept walking. Hitsugaya announced himself with a loud sigh as he reentered the room, replacing Ikkaku.

"Well Yamato-taichou has put Mayori on the case of finding the killed human. He said that he will contact us if they find anything out."

"That's good," Urahara said.

"I suppose."

"It's not your fault you know."

"Yes it is. I was on duty; it was my responsibility to protect everyone in this town."

"That doesn't mean–"

"Yes it does," Hitsugaya cut him off. "I appreciate you trying to make my feel better, but I know the truth. It was my fault. Don't try and argue it; it will only make my feel worse."

Hitsugaya forced a tight smile and stalked out of the room. Urahara looked down at the failed box sadly. It was mostly his fault, and now the young captain was blaming himself for a wrongful death. His thoughts were cut off when Hitsugaya called out to him.

"I'm just going to go tell Ichigo what happened and then I'll come back. Alert me if there was a breakthrough, OK?"

"OK," Urahara replied.

Hitsugaya began pacing to Ichigo's house. It was weird to think that only six hours earlier he had been eating dinner there without the slightest care in the world. Cautiously, he slid Ichigo's window open and darted through.

"Toshiro!" Ichigo's voice sounded startled hinted with confusion.

"Sorry that it's so late, but I have news that I think you want to hear." Quickly, he filled him in and once he finished, Ichigo's face was dark and his eyes had an intense look in them.

"We'll find that bastard," He assured Hitsugaya.

"I hope. Well, I have to go now; I want to patrol the town to see if anything unusual pops up."

Ichigo nodded. "I'll stop by Urahara's tomorrow."

"OK, see you then," Hitsugaya said, already bolting out of the room. Right now all he wanted was to be alone.

After several hours of searching with still no luck, Hitsugaya admitted defeat. Finding a springy part of grass, he gently sat down. As he closed his eyes in an attempt to fall asleep, he was fervently hoping that he would have peaceful dreams and not be plagued with nightmare. But as he had discovered earlier that night, luck was not on his side.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

_Darkness filled the air, surrounding Toshiro, creating a blanket that covered everything, making illusions of what is real and what is not. In darkness so black, it was futile to trust your eyes because more often that not, they would be lying._

_Suddenly, a bright white light pierced through the blackness and illuminated Toshiro's face and his startled eyes. He peered into the unknown, searching for what was lighting up the world. A light laugh filled his ears and echoed around the space, repeating over and over, each time growing a little softer until it finally faded. It sounded so familiar and with a heart sinking like it was filled with lead, Toshiro spoke one word, a name._

_"Karin."_

_She laughed again and gradually the darkness lifted, taking away a small fear Toshiro didn't even know existed with it. He surveyed his surroundings and realized it was the same setting as where he had once watched the stars with her. Taking a deep breath, he glanced back at her, knowing that when he did the air in his lungs would have vanished._

_Her eyes were lively and focused on taking Toshiro's appearance in, darting around his face and absorbing his features. A smile flitted onto his lips but it was fleeting and brief because as happy as Karin's face appeared to be it seemed as if there was sadness hidden behind it. Reaching out, he went to grab her hand but she pulled away and started to walk in the opposite direction._

_"Where are you going?" He called after her, but she had no reply, instead continuing her flight in silence._

_Toshiro's brow furrowed, his face became closed and troubled. 'Why was she leaving and keeping her secrets away from him instead of telling him what was wrong?' He thought. He had remembered her as a tough, defiant tomboy who stood up for what she believed in, and this didn't seem like her at all. His mouth narrowed into a thin line, angry with himself. 'Then again, how can I claim that I know what she is like if I left her to return to my duties in Soul Society and haven't seen her in several years?'_

_Despite his pessimistic thoughts, he hurried after her through the grass field, slowly catching up to her. Reaching out, he snatched her hand and held on tightly as she went to draw away. Her eyes narrowed, but Toshiro saw only a facade of anger that was covering up her true emotions._

_"What are you doing?" Her voice didn't have its usual proud ring to it._

_"I could ask the same of you."_

_"You need to stay away from me; you need to go home and never come back."_

_"What do you mean? Why would I go back? Karin, I - " The words spilling out of his mouth finally stopped as his mind caught up to what his body was saying. Yet, he still finished the thought that he had begun. "I love you."_

_Her face darkened. "Stop lying to me, Toshiro."_

_"I'm not lying, I promise!"_

_"If you truly loved me, then you would have noticed. You would have seen that I was different from before; you would have seen how now I'm broken, falling apart and rotting inside, barely able to stay alive."_

_He fiercely brought his eyes to meet hers and with panic, he saw they were empty, dead. A part of her soul was gone, and he hadn't even its absence until now. His eyes had been covered, seeing only what he wanted to see and not the truth lying so plainly before them. His stomach sick, he reached out and pulled her close to him, hugging her tightly as if this would make up for his blindness._

_"I'm so sorry," he whispered into her raven black hair._

_Tightening his arms, they suddenly collapsed in upon themselves as there was no Karin to embrace, simply air. They thudded to his sides, his heart clenched painfully. Drawing back to watch in panic, he stared at her, only it wasn't her. The girl he had been hugging moments before was now just a fuzzy outline of features, fading like smoke. Desperately, he grabbed at her, trying to hold onto her, to keep her safe and next to him. But his fingers went right through the illusion, distorting the image and destroying any last of hope of feeling her warmth again. Shimmering slightly, Karin vanished fully, leaving Toshiro standing in an empty field and feeling even emptier inside._

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What did you think? Leave your opinions in a review please! (:

Poll: do you like 3rd person or 1st person more?


	4. The Boyfriend

Hey! Sorry for the wait, and hopefully that won't happen again because I have a new laptop! Anyways, enjoy this chapter and more will be coming your way soon!

**Disclaimer:** I do no own Bleach because if I did, this story would be on TV.

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Hitsugaya looked down at the ground and kicked a small, grey stone along the cement sidewalk, following after it. It had been almost a week since he and his team had entered the Real World and still there had been hardly more than wisps of Visored reiatsu. It was infuriating being bested by this creature, and he was beginning to wonder if this Visored was indeed real and not just a phantom. Angrily, he kicked the rock with as much force as he could muster and smiled with satisfaction as he watched it fly into a wall and smash into tiny pieces.

"Well I was going to ask if you wanted to play soccer with me, but I can see you're not in the best of moods," a girl's voice laughed.

Hitsugaya's head shot up and he suddenly became aware of Karin's presence in front of him. She stood, her face smug, but not conceited, still awaiting Hitsugaya's response. Smiling slightly, he let his eyes meet hers. "Sure, we can go, just so long as you're not using my skills to beat some punks taking over your field," he teased, making fun of an event from the last time he visited Karakura.

"I can take care of myself you know," she huffed. "That one time that you did help me was just because I my knee was hurt that day, otherwise we would have been fine and easily defeated those middle school kids."

"Mhm, I'm _so _sure."

"Hey!"

Hitsugaya laughed at how flustered Karin was getting. It was a welcomed break from her confident and in control self, and besides she was cute when her cheeks were flushed pink…

"Ne, Toshiro. Last time you got really upset when people said that you were in elementary school and I know that you are that you are a shinigami so I was just wondering how old are you actually?"  
Hitsugaya sighed. "In Soul Society, age doesn't matter because how old you look doesn't necessarily reflect the number of years you have been living there."

"You didn't answer my question."  
"I know."  
"So are you going to?"

"No."  
Karin narrowed her eyes. "You act so much like a kid, Shiro-chan."

Hitsugaya stumbled over an imaginary crack in the sidewalk and he felt as though his heart had skipped a beat. "What did you call me?" He stuttered, licking his lips which seemed to have instantly become dry.

"Shiro-chan," Karin replied, her brow furrowing as she gave him a strange look.

"But how did? Why? Are you?" Hitsugaya's panic was showing clearly and he felt ridiculous but it was, in a way, reasonable. After all, the last time Karin had called him Shiro-chan was in one of dreams and she ended up dying only minutes later.

Karin stared at Hitsugaya for a long moment before speaking. "I just came up with it now, and thought it was cute, but if upsets you so much then I won't say it."  
"No, it's um, fine."

Turning her attention back to the road, Karin spotted the soccer field and ran ahead. "I've gotten a lot better, just you watch!" She taunted Hitsugaya from six feet ahead, leaving him no choice but to run after her.

'It was a good thing Karin is so distractible,' he thought as he chased after her. There was a nagging voice in the back of his mind that told him she might have chosen that moment to become "distracted" so she would have time to mull over his unusual behavior, but he pushed that thought out of his head.

"Hurry up, Shiro-chan!" Karin's voice carried through the air. In spite of himself, Hitsugaya smiled: this was sure to be a memorable afternoon.

Hitsugaya jogged the short stretch of grass between him and Karin, and flopped down beside her, leaning backwards onto his propped up arms.  
"What's wrong? Tired of losing to me?" He teased, nudging her foot.

She scowled in return, her cheeks flushing slightly pink. "I wasn't losing by that much. And besides, it's unfair that you're a shinigami and I'm just a regular old human."

Hitsugaya laughed. "You know, you're cute when you blush." And to his satisfaction, he watched as Karin's cheeks flamed crimson.

Karin opened her mouth to snap a retort, but was cut off by a male voice that sounded her age.

"Oi! Karin!"

A young boy ran toward the pair, his light brown hair flapping ridiculously as he ran. He was short, but toned, his body not unlike that of the 10th squad captain, and his green eyes seemed to sparkle giving his face overall a friendly and inviting look.

"Banki!" Karin's voice hinted that she was extremely happy to see this boy and Hitsugaya couldn't help but inch closer to her as if this action would make her and more his.

Banki eventually reached the pair, and as he did Karin leapt up to embrace him in a long hug. When they released, she turned to face Hitsugaya to make the introductions, still holding Banki's hand. "Banki, this is Toshiro. Toshiro, this is Banki, my boyfriend," she said, her voice pausing on the last word. Looking up, she glanced into Toshiro's eyes as if she was waiting for his approval or at least a sign of recognition.

Hitsugaya, however, didn't register her glance for his mind had gone blank at the word 'boyfriend'. He saw the scene replaying itself in his mind again and again; he saw Karin's mouth form the two syllables and heard at the word tumbled from her lips. Yet not even that could make him believe that she had chosen this skinny kid to love. Hitsugaya had assumed Banki was only one of the losers that she played soccer with and whom she considered just a friend despite the way he looked longingly at her. But obviously something was different about this boy, after all Karin had chosen him over Hitsugaya.

Still thinking, Hitsugaya's lip formed a frown and he shook his head almost unnoticeably. That wasn't entirely true. Hitsugaya hadn't been there for Karin for the past year so she would naturally find someone else, but if he had been there surely things would have been different. It would be Hitsugaya being introduced as the boyfriend; Karin would have chosen him over Banki… wouldn't she have? He wasn't too sure anymore.

His eyes coming back into focus, Hitsugaya stared at Karin and Banki and felt the tension hanging so noticeably hanging in the air. How long had he been spacing out for? He smiled sheepishly, hoping things hadn't gotten too awkward in his moments of silence. As if sensing his thoughts, Karin laughed, her black eyes dancing and alive. Hitsugaya breathed a sigh of relief seeing her so happy, but was partially hoping that he would wake up and this could all just be a big nightmare.

Karin exhaled loudly and leaned back against Banki's body, her back bending perfectly to meet the curves of his chest and stomach as if this was the most natural action in the world. Perhaps for them it was, but for Hitsugaya it was an exquisite form of torture, and he was about to break. Clearing his throat loudly, he formed what he hoped to be an apologetic smile.

"I'm sorry to say this, but I have to go. You know how Matsumoto gets; if I don't stop her from buying out the entire store then I will be paying off the bills for months."

Karin laughed and pulled away from Banki, and Hitsugaya was pleased to see that his expression was that of bewilderment perhaps from the mention of bills, a foreign concept to middle school kids. Hitsugaya suppressed a smile; he liked having inside jokes with Karin: they made him feel like he had a chance after all.

Walking towards Hitsugaya, Karin put her arms around his neck, enveloping him in a hug. As his hands encircled her narrow waist, he had the urge to pull her away from the field, away from her boyfriend's watching eyes. But however much the want, he could not, so he untangled her arms from his neck, glad that he was the one pulling away and not vice versa. With a final goodbye, he left the couple and crossed the field.

The farther he got, the more he sped up; he couldn't seem to get away fast enough. As childish as the idea seemed, he hoped that if he left them and forgot that they were dating then maybe they wouldn't be anymore. Scoffing at his infancy, he tried to focus on solely on finding the Visored to finish the case and get the hell out of Karakura. Maybe that way he would truly be able to put Karin and Banki out of his mind.

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Well what did you think? Leave a review telling me what you think and of course you can send a message with comments or concerns. Any ways you think I can improve my writing style or this story will gladly be accepted and appreciated so please, speak up! :)


	5. A Discovery

Well here is an update (finally!). I feel like I say this every update, but I'm trying to keep up with writing and hopefully will have an update for you once a week/every other week. Well, enjoy this! More coming hopefully soon.

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Bleach or these amazing characters [although I wish I did].

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"You OK, Captain? You seem upset," Matsumoto said peering closely into Hitsugaya's face. He narrowed his eyes and a vein twitched as he tried to suppress his annoyance.

"I'm fine," he muttered, pushing his way by her so he could continue walking along the street.

"Huh?" She turned and watched as he stalked by her. "Well Urahara told me to come find you seeing as there is urgent news regarding the Visored case, but you turned your cell phone off. I can tell him that you are busy though if you want me to…?" Her voice trailed off, gauging how angry her captain was.

Hitsugaya frowned and opened his hollow tracking device that doubled as a phone, turning it back on so that he would start receiving alerts. "I'll be there shortly I –" he stopped abruptly as it started beeping loudly. "Another Hollow," he said. "I just have to defeat this one and then I will be right over there."

"Hai," Matsumoto responded and watched as her captain took off running in search of the Hollow.

It was only a matter of moments before it was located, and when Hitsugaya saw it, he quickly slipped out of his gigai and unsheathed his sword in one fluid motion. He faced the hollow, his stance and eyes defiant, taunting the Hollow to attack. As it did, he defended easily and switched to offence and cutting off one of its hands. The Hollow screamed a loud, pained cry and Hitsugaya smiled; perhaps this was a good way for him to let out his anger. He tortured the Hollow, cutting off limb by limb making it suffer and feeling relieved as each sword swing released a tiny part of his frustration. Suddenly, a sword cut through the Hollows mask, and as it screeched, it dissolved into tiny black fragments until Hitsugaya was left staring at Ikaku.

"It's not the Hollow's fault you know. Don't torture it, just kill it quickly," Ikaku said flatly, staring into Hitsugaya's eyes.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"I saw you playing soccer with Karin and I saw you meet that boy. Her boyfriend right? I get that you're angry, but don't play with the Hollows before you kill them; you're only making others suffer along with you… I can't believe that it's me explaining this to you," Ikaku laughed, shaking hi head slowly.

Hitsugaya stared. It was unusual for Madarame to be the one giving lecture on ethics, and it was even more surprising that Hitsugaya had done something to deserve it. Turning his head in embarrassment, he spoke quietly. "I'm going back to Urahara's shop because there is new information considering the case."

"Uh, yeah. That's why I was sent to find you in the first place. Urahara said that Mayori's team has found out the human who was killed by the Visored, and we are able to communicate with her soul. We also have the location of death, so that may help, too."

"But typically souls don't remember their past lives unless they have extremely high spirit energy. Does this soul?"

"It's doubtful, but Urahara said that she may remember snatches of the scenes right before her death."

Hitsugaya nodded firmly. Perhaps there was some progress being made on this case. "We should go." And with that, he turned and shunpoed back to the shop.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Hitsugaya stared at the screen, watching the girl who was killed by the Visored. He felt his stomach clench; she only appeared to be elementary school, far too young to be dead already. In fact, she was only a little younger than Karin. Karin. That was just another reason to eliminate the Visored as quickly as possible; it would ensure her safety. He turned his attention back to the girl whose name was Misa. Pausing slightly, he tried to think of an easily answered question because Urahara had only given him fifteen minutes with the girl, so he didn't want to have to explain his questions.

"Now Misa, try to think back to before you woke up in your bed in Rungokai. What do you remember from before then?" Hitsugaya asked gently, trying to have his voice soothe the dead girl's nerves. She was after all glancing around nervously.

"Nothing," she whispered.

"Nothing at all? Not even flashes of bright colors or being afraid?"

"Um, well…" She trailed off.

"Yes?"

"I remember this field. It was big and grassy; I think that I was lying down in it. It was nighttime and I could see stars. It was pretty…"

Hitsugaya glanced at Urahara for verification that this was indeed where Misa had died. Urahara nodded lightly, so he asked, "anything else?"

"There was something shimmering above me and it looked like a mask… Its mouth moved and it screamed at me; it was so scary." Misa's voice and body shook slightly. "I wanted it to go away. I didn't want to have it near me again because it made me not breathe." The trembling became increasingly more violent.

"Was there anyone else there with you?"

"I don't remember…"

"Just relax and think about it."

"I think there was… yes. I don't know who… I don't know him." Misa began shaking so badly that she could barely stand.

'Just a little bit further…' Hitsugaya thought. "Do you know what he looks like?"

Misa nodded slowly before stifling a scream and clutching at her forehead. "No, I don't know. I don't want to know. Make it stop! Make me stop thinking about this! I don't want to remember! Please…" She begged. "Please, make it go away!"

"Hitsugaya," Urahara's voice was firm and demanding, letting Hitsugaya know that his questioning time was over. Perhaps he could have gotten more answers out if Misa had not been so stressed, however this was normal for souls who underwent a traumatic death.

Nodding at the camera he let the monitor go blank, leaving Misa in a whole other world. He had come so close to solving this case, yet he hadn't been able to. At least he had been able to elicit some information: Misa was with a boy that night. That meant that either the Visored was a male, or someone else had witnessed the Visored, but had not died. Brow furrowing, he went to walk over to the shop door. "I'm going to see the soccer fields again to see if there is any evidence that we overlooked," he called over his shoulder as he stepped out into the cool night air. He was so close to solving it now.

As he approached the fields, the air seemed to change feel. It was heavy and compressing, not like air at all. This could only mean one thing: the Visored was near, and it was active. Racing forwards he stood in the middle of the field trying to determine in which direction it was coming from. Huge flashes of light from visible reiatsu lit up the sky, and he shunpoed quickly over to them. As he did, a terrible cry was let out: it was the cry of a Hollow, only this one was much more human which made goose bumps rise on his arms. Hurrying forwards, he saw the outline of two figures. One was hunched into a tight ball, their arms protecting their head and face; the other was horribly contorted. Their legs and arms bent in agony, their chest was thrown upwards as a liquid hollow mask retreated quickly into the black hole between their shoulders. This was definitely the Visored fighting the Hollow within them, and the human part appeared to be winning. The person screamed again, this time more human than Hollow, as the Hollow was once again swallowed back into their chest. As the figure collapsed to the ground, a blinding flash of light went off and revealed the two figures to the lying both of their backs, their limbs perfectly spread out. Hitsugaya hurried over as he tried to identify the two. One was a girl, one was a boy; one had raven black hair, one had light brown. Could it possibly be Karin and Banki? The closer he got, the more he seemed to be proved right until suddenly another bust of light lit up the night. As Hitsugaya's dazed eyesight returned to normal he was shocked: as the light had disappeared, the bodies had too.

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So what do you think? Approve? Disapprove? Leave a comment telling me what you think, or send a message with any questions or concerns. Thanks!

ps. If you have any good Death Note fanfictions for me to read, recommendations would be appreciated (:


	6. Hopeless Worries

Oh hey guys! I know its been a while, actually its been forever, how many months since I last updated? Well all that is over! I am updating once again, and hopefully there will be more consistent updates from here on out, but no promises. Well enjoy! And remember to leave your feedback in a comment (:

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Bleach, although I seriously wish I did...

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Toshiro stood in the field for quite some time gazing at the spot where the two young bodies had lain just moments before. It was impossible to think that it could have been Karin and Banki, but perhaps that was only because Hitsugaya simply didn't want it to be them due to his and Karin's relationship. Would it be better to tell someone so they could be an unbiased, third-party decider? No, Hitsugaya shook his head. He would only be mocked. But then what was he to do? For how much longer he stood staring into the depths of the field was impossible to say, and it was only when he heard a familiar voice that he turned around.

"Oi! Taicho!" Matsumoto's voice trilled. "Did you see the – "

"Matte," he commanded, holding up his hand.

Matsumoto stopped short, her eyes on his face, expectantly waiting the important actions of her captain. He walked a few steps closer to the woods, seeming to be concentrating closely. Suddenly, his eyes shot open in surprise, he turned towards his lieutenant

"Did you feel that?"

She frowned. "Yeah, demo, Taicho, do you think its relevant?"

He stood, pondering if he should tell her about his suspicions of Karin and Banki's involvement in the affair, but instead decided to talk about the flash of reiatsu they had just felt.

"The Visored was just here. I almost saw it; I was that close… Anything in this area is worth checking out, even a small flare of reiatsu, due to that."

Matsumoto nodded. "I can go, Urahara said he wanted to speak to you. He had more details about this than I do, but he said there was an accomplice."

Toshiro's head snapped up, his eyes giant turquoise orbs reflecting his shock. "An accopmplice? Does he have solid evidence for this?"

"You'd have to ask hm. Ne, Taicho, do you really think this accomplice will have that significant of an impact on our case?"

"Two people act much differently that someone who is independent. This could revolutionize our way of attempting to track them because if we could get a sample of the accomplice's reiatsu, then we could get their identity. Perhaps from that we could even discover the Visored's identity as well and - "

"Then we could get off this case! I can't wait to wear all my new clothes in Soul Society!"

"Yeah, well I'd best be off."

"Hai."

Toshiro shot off into the darkness, all the while thinking about Urahara's hypothesis. An accomplice, huh? This could easily explain what he thought he saw in the woods. Banki was the Visored and his reiatsu was so powerful that whenever he transformed, it overwhelmed Karin to the point that she couldn't think clearly or even lost consciousness. Meaning she wasn't technically an accomplice, but just an unlucky bystander.

Toshiro frowned. As much as he supported this version of events, he knew it couldn't be true because considering their reiatsu levels, Karin's was significantly higher that Banki's, not unlike Ichigo. If there was a Visored connection between them, she would certainly be aware of it, more so than her boyfriend. She was no bystander. But what if she was the Visored?

Toshiro's fist clenched and hung painfully at his side. She couldn't be!

Arriving at Urahara's shop, Toshiro slammed the door open, obviously still distressed about Karin's involvement. Too impatient to wait for Tessei to greet him, he loudly called into the store, "Urahara! You said you had new leads for me?"

"Ah, yes." Urahara responded walking out of one of the back rooms. "I was in fact just working on a product that may be able to help us. I'm assuming that Matsumoto told you the basics of my lastest idea?"

"The accomplice? Yes."

"Well if we can get a sample of his reiatsu, then we can submit it into the device that would start tracking and searching for any more of his reaitsu. When he is located, the device will flash his coordinates. It's pretty similar to the first device that we attempted to use, only its more sophisticated due to some updates I made."

"His? He? I assume that it has determined that the accomplice is male then?"

"Ah, no. Sorry, I forgot about gender equality. His or her reiatsu. The accomplice could be either gender." Urahara smiled sheepishly, putting his hand behind his head.

"I see." Hitsugaya scolded himself for jumping to conclusions about the usage of 'he'. Just because Urahara said 'he' in reference to the accomplice didn't mean that the accomplice was male and therefore Banki. He was seriously getting too worked up over this whole matter. "Well it seems like you are working on a very good invention, so I will let you resume your work, but before you do, I have a quick scenario and I wondered if it could be possible."

"Oh?"

"I though the accomplice might be close friends with the Visored so her or she is always spending time together. However, he or she had fairly weak reiatsu so when the Visored transforms he or she becomes unconscious?"

Urahara paused for a moment, considering Hitsugaya's proposal. "That is possible, yes."

"Interesting. Arigato, Urahara-san."

"Yeah."

Hitsugaya walked back to the entrance of the shop, and left. He needed to talk to Karin immediately, to assuage his fears of her being the perpetrator.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

"Karin-chan!" Toshiro loudly called out, hurrying towards the short, black haired girl. "I need to talk to you about something. I know you were wondering why I am here, and this will explain it. You might not know this but in Soul Society, I am - "

"A captain I know," Karin cut Toshiro off mid-sentence. "Ichi-nii explained to be all about Soul Society after one night when I confronted him after I found that he had snuck out to beat up those monsters…. What were they called again?"

"Hollows?" Toshiro supplied.

"Yeah! So then if you are so important, why are you here? Are there too many Hollows for Ichi-nii to fight alone?"

"Well the problem is not so much the number of Hollows, your brother can handle those, but there is one particularly powerful, bad one. It's called a Visored."

As Toshiro spoke, Karin's brow creased ever so slightly, the only indication of her true feelings on her otherwise expressionless and carefree face. Noticing this, Toshiro's fist clenched.

_'Could it be that Karin was the true perpetrator?'_

Fists shaking, he reassured himself of her innocence. He was over analyzing – of course she would be worried about a powerful monster roaming her town, and that slight furrow in her brow was simply worry that she tried to conceal so Toshiro wouldn't see behind that tough mask of hers. That fear didn't mean that she was guilty – it was a healthy reaction!

"Have you guys almost killed it?" She asked quietly, interrupting Toshiro's extensive train of thought.

After a moment's deliberation, he responded, "it's hard to tell. We have several leads and even a few sightings so it's only a matter of time before we catch it and kill it. Don't worry."

"I'm glad. I'm sure everyone will be much safer without it causing terror."

Toshiro allowed himself a smug smile because clearly, she was simply concerned about her friends and family. "Yeah, of course."

"So what was it that you wanted to talk to me about?"

"Well that was partially it. A girl of around your age was killed by the Visored so intelligence in Soul Society was curious as to if any of your other classmates were acting differently. They think there is a chance that the Visored is one of your classmates. I just wanted to see if you had anything that would help us out…" Toshiro swallowed, ashamed at lying about one of Soul Society's leads. No one seriously considered the possibility of the Visored being a child, except for Toshiro.

"A girl around my age killed… but they said that she was killed by a ravage dog! It was all over the news!"

"Well yes, because they don't know about Hollows of Visoreds, people have to make sense of Hollow-related encounters with things that they do know about. In this case, a dog attack makes perfect sense to them."

"No…" Karin whispered and to Toshiro's surprise, her shoulders began to tremble every so slightly, her fist curled at the effort of restraining her eyes from spilling the tears welled up in them. Then finally one managed to escape, the others following behind it one after another, rolling down her face. Not knowing what else to do, Toshiro stepped forward and embraced her, his arms wrapping around her thin body. She leaned her head against his shoulder and let the tears fall freely in the comfort of his arms.

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So that was chapter 6. Did you like it? Leave a review letting me know what you think! If you like the HitsuKarin pairing I have a oneshot about them - Rain of Tears. Feel free to check it out, but I'm not like pressuring you into reading it or any of that other fake crap (:

Hopefully, you guys will be reading my next chapter soon! Bye.


	7. The Visored

Here it is: the 7th chapter! Much stuff is revealed, and is [hopefully] exciting. Well, read on and enjoy!

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Bleach all; if I did then Karin and Toshiro would be dating 3

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_A muffled sound whispered through the night, so quiet that Toshiro had to strain just to hear its soft murmurs. Curious, he walked towards the source briskly, pausing after a few moments to listen carefully to it again. Yet the sound had neither gotten louder nor softer._

_Confused, he began to walk faster and faster until he wasn't walking anymore but running, yet even that was not fast enough. No matter how fast he forced his legs to move it wasn't fast enough to get him to the source. Annoyed, he stopped running and slowed to a walk, and then stopped moving altogether. He sat down on the cold asphalt, just listening to the sound. But as hard as he tried, he still couldn't distinguish it._

_He lay on his back and stared up at the dark, starless sky, his eyes flickering from one end of the horizon to the other, not knowing where the sky ended and the ground began. Not knowing something that should be so definite was unnerving, so he tried to think of things that he would always be able to rely on. He listed them off in his head: being a captain, having Hyourinmaru, Momo and his grandmother loving them. With a pang, he remembered his grandmother's illness and realized that she might not love him for much longer because she might not be here for much longer. If she did pass away, Momo might not love him anymore because she might blame him for not visiting enough. At that, all the certainties in his life seemed to fall apart: he could turn against Soul Society and destroy his captaincy or he could lose his shinigami powers and with that Hyourinmaru. A feeling of helplessness overwhelmed him and despite being the strong, in-control captain, he couldn't stop his body from trembling as tears welled up in eyes. One escaped from beneath his eyelid and soon the others were following suit, chasing each other one after another down his face._

_Suddenly, he knew what the mysterious sound that he heard earlier was: muffled sobs. His stomach clenching with hopelessness of how to help the crying stranger, he thought of the words that he wanted somebody to tell him right now. Quietly he called them into the darkness. "Shhh, it's okay. Everything is going to be okay… Don't worry… Shhh.."_

_The sound paused for a moment, before the person responded. "You don't know what it's like. It hurts: feeling empty inside and acting happy on the outside, crying silently everyday and having no one notice. People tell you that they love you, but they don't see how you're hurt inside."_

_Toshio stood up and began walking towards the voice. "Well I'm here for you now; I heard the cries that you thought were so silent. I could feel your emptiness and brokenness if only you would let me."_

_The voice responded louder this time, the distance between it and Toshiro was shrinking rapidly. "I tried. I tried to show you, and I tried to show the world. Yet you put up walls between yourself and the real me. The real me is ugly, it's in agony, so you put a mask on it and pretend that it's pretty and pain-free."_

_Toshiro grimaced at the bitterness cutting him with every sharp word she spoke. "Will you give me one more chance? Let me try to see you one more time, the real you."_

_"Okay," the girl spoke, her voice quiet and delicate. She stepped out of the shadows and he saw a cute, familiar face framed by short raven black hair. Coal colored eyes regarded him wearily and a slight frown wrinkled the perfectly shaped lips._

_"Karin?" He asked._

_"I'm not the Karin that you know," she whispered. "I'm not pretty, not happy, and surely not carefree. I'm lonely, helpless, and hurt. Try to see the inner me; try to see what I see when I look in the mirror. Please, Shiro-chan. I said that I was giving you one more chance."_

_He looked at her, imagining her face contorted in agony, tears on loneliness streaming down her cheeks, her body quivering with fear of the unknown. And slowly the face that he saw began to change. Her eyes lost their sparkle to become cold, dull, and lifeless. Her hair lost its luster and instead hung limply in stringy bunches. Her ivory skin became blotchy and unattractive. But most noticeable and scary of all was the human qualities of her face contorted; no longer did she look like a young girl, but a sick and twisted demonic creature. Emotions spilled across her face, each changing a feature to make her increasing uglier. Now anger, hate, bitterness, pain, loneliness, helplessness, and fear all had their own place on her wicked façade._

_Toshiro could do nothing but stare at the incredible transformation, mesmerized by the emotions she had been hiding for so long finally put on display. It was horribly disgusting, yet he couldn't bear to wrench his eyes away from the atrocious sight._

_"Can't you see now?" She murmured. "I'm a monster."_

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A pair of turquoise eyes flew open in the dark to stare at the ceiling of one of the back rooms in Urahara's shop.

"Dammit," Hitsugaya swore in between rapid gasps of breath. Inhaling deeply, he attempted to calm his heart rate and forget the tremor and adrenaline running through his veins. Shaking his head in annoyance, he tried to convince himself that these dreams were weird and irrational, so he should just forget about them.

"I am going to catch that bastard Visored so I can return to Soul Society. Everything can go back to how it should be then; Karin will become only that cute girl from the World of the Living once more," he muttered bitterly.

He tried to settle back into his warm bed, but after finding falling asleep to be a fruitless task he stood up and slipped silently out of his room and though Urahara's store until the chilly night air greeted his face. The cold wind whipped through his white hair, tousling it, but he didn't care. He was used to the cold; he liked the cold. Sighing in content as his muscles relaxed in the chill, his nightmare seemed like a far away memory soon to be forgotten. Lifting his face to the sky, he observed that there was not a single could in the sky obscuring the light of the moon or stars reaching down to Earth.

Suddenly, his senses alerted and all signs of the newfound tranquility vanished. Adrenaline began to flow once more, fast and furious giving his a false sense of energy and awareness. He could sense reiatsu, neither human nor shinigami, just the smallest flare along the outskirts of Karakura Town. Tonight would be the night the Visored went down.

Pushing off from the ground hard, Hitsugaya began sprinting towards the reiatsu still lingering in the air. He 'shunpo'ed as fast as he could, the buildings flashing by as just a mere blur in his speed. The intensity of the reiatsu appeared to build as he drew nearer, and with a grimace, he increased his speed one final time before he stood in front of the soccer field.

Pausing a moment, his jaw clenched and his eyes narrowed in determination before he hurried across the space separating him from a monster.

The Visored was clearly illuminated in the moonlight and starlight, its frame so small that it had to belong to a child. The human form was covered by a translucent, bubbling red reiatsu that spewed from the trademark Hollow hole in the middle of its chest. The reiatsu seemed to give the human a different form, presumably the shape that the Hollow would take on if released. Tipping its head back, the Visored let out a piercing, blood curdling scream that chilled Hitsugaya to the bones. As the cry trailed off, the creature coughed and a fountain of the blood colored reaitsu flew out of its mouth. Suddenly, it collapsed, falling to it hands and knees, trembling with sheer pressure.

Hitsugaya paused, unsure if and how to intervene as the human struggled to overcome the Hollow's powers.

One of the Visored's arms collapsed, so it was now balanced with its full forearm on the ground, still shaking. It let out another cry, a scream so human yet so full of pain and suffering that it seemed impossible for one person to contain so much agony in one body. As it let out this terrible cry, the reiatsu surrounding the Visored seemed to be retracting from around the human body to fill the hole in its chest. The figure glowed for a moment, but as it managed to repress the power of the Hollow, the glow disappeared with all traces of the reiatsu.

It was only then that Hitsugaya could see the human form of the Visored.

"No…" he whispered, falling to his knees in disbelief and shock. "No…"

The figure continues to tremble despite its efforts of containing the Hollow had ended. Coughing, a splash of blood fell to the ground, a red stain underneath the its mouth.

"No…" Hitsugaya moaned.

Finally acknowledging him, the Visored turned its head and met his mournful gaze. Hitsugaya's turquoise eyes stared directly into a coal black pair.

"So, you've finally found me, eh Shiro-chan?" Karin voice wasn't mocking, but instead soft and unbearably sweet. She forced a smile that looked so horrible out of place of her blood stained face that Hitsugaya turned his head away from her.

He numbly stood up and walked over to Karin to tower over her kneeling body. She struggled to stand, so weak that she swayed on her feet, unsteady and unbalanced. Yet that didn't stop her from directly meeting Hitsugaya's stare. Limply holding out her wrists, she surrendered herself to being arrested and taken back to Soul Society to face her punishments.

When Hitsugaya made no move to retrain her in kido, she spoke to him as encouragingly as possible. "You know that if you don't do this, then someone else will and they may not be as gentle as I am sure you will be." Trying to smile again proved to be too much for Karin as he moved towards her outstretched wrists, so instead she closed her eyes.

A light tap and her arms were fully bound in a pale blue kido. A small pull and she was stumbling along behind Hitsugaya as he led her across the soccer field, retracing back the steps that he had so urgently run just minutes before.

"We will use the Senkai Gate in Urahara's shop to return to Soul Society, but I will allow you to rest tonight." His voice was quiet and emotionless, the triumph he had imagined would be in it was now gone.

After several moments of walking in silence, Matsumoto appeared before him.

"Taichou?" She asked questioningly. He knew that in this one word, she was asking if Karin was the Visored and if everything was going to be okay. Keeping his face ever blank, he responded to her two questions in one word.

"Yes." He said it with as much conviction as was possible for someone who didn't truly believe the words that he was speaking.

She nodded, her face clouded with emotions that she tried desperately to conceal. He knew how found she had grown to the girl, after all it had been Karin that Matsumoto had dragged along on all of her shopping trips.

"Did you want me to bring her to Urahara's shop?" She finally asked after a long pause.

"No, I will. However, go to the Kurosaki house and bring Ichigo back. I think that he will need to talk to Karin, Urahara, and myself before we leave tomorrow."  
"Hai." She responded tersely before vanishing back into the night.

"Ichi-nii is coming?" Karin whispered.

"Yes… I assumed that you and he would like to talk one final time before you come with me…"

"Arigato, Shrio-chan," she said, her voice trailing off before she collapsed, exhausted from all the effort she had exerted. Hitsugaya caught her falling body easily in his slender yet strong arms. She felt too light for someone her height; it seem as though she wasn't truly there. Cradling her body close to his own, he felt her warmth flow through his arms and chest, warming him from the outside in. Without saying a word, he kept walking to Urahara's shop, letting his mind wander around the same four words: Karin was the Visored.

As Hitsugaya slid open the door to Urahara's shop, Ichigo leapt to his feet, his brown eyes darting from Hitsugaya to Karin to the bonds on her wrists in panic.

"Matsumoto said that she saw– and now you're hear but– Karin could never have–," Ichigo's words blended together, phrases and sentences jumbled together trying to find a cure for his worry.

Hitsugaya looked up into Ichigo's face and felt his stomach drop. Seeing someone as strong and confident as Ichigo act so lost and confused made the truth seem all the more real and devastating. Unable to speak, he walked over to a small pile of cushions and gently laid Karin down upon them.

Ichigo opened his mouth to speak once more, but Urahara stopped him with a firm "Ichigo. Sit down again and I will explain everything."

"You? But you were here the whole time, weren't you? I just – "

"Sit down, Ichigo. You too, Hitsugaya-san. This will make a lot more sense if you let me talk without interruptions."

After waiting patiently for Ichigo and Hitsugaya to be seated at the table with Matsumoto, Ikakku, and Yamachicka, Urahara began to talk once more.

"It's my fault that this whole situation got so out of hand. I knew that Karin was the Visored for quite some time now. Please, no interruptions," he said, watching everyone open their mouths to speak. "She came to me the day after the Hollow attack, looking very beaten up and shaking. I took her in and naturally found out what had happened. Her memory wasn't too clear, all she remembered was being in the soccer field when a Hollow appeared and started attacking her. I inferred the rest. When I explained the situation to her, she panicked and of course wanted to tell you, especially after I told her that you had a Hollow inside you as well.

However, I convinced her that the best thing she could do now was to give it some time. I know Soul Society, and I knew what they would do her. Although I didn't know Karin personally at that point, I couldn't let an innocent life go through that hell. I thought that I could develop some technology that could help because I had primitive knowledge of Visoreds.

Karin visited me several times over the next week, describing to me all of her struggles with exact details. It was incredibly helpful for researching purposes, and although I made several small technologies, I couldn't help her as much as I had thought I would be able to. In a few instances, she lost control for a couple minutes and would have to fight to suppress the Hollow. That's when Soul Society became aware of the situation. Not long after that, Hitsugaya and his team came to solve this 'problem'. Karin panicked she heard, and was even more determined to tell Ichigo. Again, I told her let things play out.

Of course, I didn't do anything to hinder the mission; in fact I made several tools that could be used to help. I just couldn't force myself to bluntly tell who the Visored was because I had put too much effort into trying to protect her. I almost did tell when I found out that Karin had killed a girl. Now she wasn't just endangering herself, but others around her. I convinced myself not to because I knew that her punishment would be terrible now. In the end though, I couldn't protect her.

If I had just complied and gone with what Karin had wanted to do in the first place, we would have never had this issue. So for that, I apologize to all of you." Urahara bent his neck and looked down, his hat casting a shadow on his face that covered his expression.

No one spoke for several moments after Urahara stopped speaking, until suddenly Ichigo rose abruptly and angrily.

"This is complete shit!" He cried, slamming his fist down upon the table. "Karin's my little sister; she's barely old enough to understand how Soul Society even works! And now you're saying that what? She's going to have to go in there and be punished for something that was completely out of her control?" Furious he turned to Urahara. "What's her punishment going to be?"

"That depends on how severe they think her crime was. At worst, she will be put to death." He replied quietly.

"Death? Death? Is Soul Society really so fucked up that they will put a little girl to death? That is so disgustingly wrong! And you," he turned to Urahara once more. "Why didn't you stop this shit? You're supposed to be in control, to always have your fucking plans! So what's your plan? How are you going to get Karin out of this goddamn hole that you dug for her?"

Urahara remained silent, taking every verbal blow that Ichigo struck him with.

"And you," he spat at Hitsugaya, "why the fuck aren't you doing anything about this? I thought that you cared about Karin; I thought that you cared about doing the right thing! Well tell me Toshiro, what's the right fucking thing to do now? Because I don't think that killing an innocent little girl is the right thing to do and I doubt that you do either! So why don't you drop all your fucking captain's pride and do the goddamn right thing!"

Blood rushed through Hitsugaya's veins, anger boiled in his chest. Yet he couldn't scream back at Ichigo; he couldn't defend what he was doing. All the rage that Ichigo had, all the words that he yelled, were justified. How could he argue for bringing Karin to Soul Society to face her death if he didn't believe in it himself?

Ichigo strode over to the table at which everyone was seated and kicked it, sending the tea cups flying into the wall, crashing loudly into a thousand pieces. "What are all you fucking bastards going to do to save my sister?"

When no one said anything, he turned towards the door and exited, slamming it so hard that the whole shop seemed to vibrate in response. No one spoke for several minutes, simply staring at the mess that Ichigo had created, all the broken pieces of glass lying shattered on the floor.

Finally a soft voice called out, "Ichi-nii?"

Urahara turned to Karin. "Your brother just left, but he will be back before you leave for Soul Society, don't worry. The best thing that you can do now is to get some rest because you have a long journey tomorrow," he reassured her softly.

She murmured something inaudible before falling back into unconsciousness. She tried to turn over in her sleep, but found her bonds restricting her. Silently, Hitsugaya walked over and released her from the kido that bound her. He watched her sleep for a moment before looking out the window into the starry night.

Turning away from her, he spoke to the room, "I am going to find Ichigo now and try to talk to him. Please, don't come looking for us." He walked steadily across the floor and just as he slid open the door to slip into the night, Urahara responded.

"Remember, Hitsugaya-san, that Ichigo isn't acting like himself now. You know how important his family is to him, and after knowing how it feels to lose one family member he will fight against losing a second. Be careful of what you say to him."

"Hai," Hitsugaya replied his attention still focused on the quiet night in front of him. With one last look back at Karin, he slipped outside for the second time that night. However, this time he was going to right a wrong.

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So what did you think? Leave a comment or message me. There are probably going to be about 3 more chapters before this series ends, so yeah. Get pumped! (:


	8. An Uncertain Future

Here is the eighth chapter! Things are finally beginning to wrap up. I hope you enjoy!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Bleach in any way shape or form.

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Hitsugaya balanced on the ledge outside of Ichigo's window, waiting for him to stand up and let him in. However, he just sat on the side of the bed, his head cradled in his hands as his entire body shook with fear and rage.

"Ichigo, let me in," Hitsugaya's voice rang out with as much authority as he could muster for being in such a groveling position. "I need to talk to you."

"Go away," Ichigo's voice was bitter and as he looked up to meet Hitsugaya's gaze, his brown eyes flashed dangerously.

"I don't want to break your window and wake up Yuzu and your dad, but if I have to I will. So just let me in, Ichigo."

Grudgingly, Ichigo stood up and walked to the window to unlock it and then slide it open. But instead of stepping back to let Hitsugaya in, he kicked him square across the chest and watched as he careened to the pavement below. Following suit, he jumped out of the window and landed lightly on the ground next to him.

"You're not setting foot inside my house," he growled.

"I just want to talk," Hitsugaya stood up and gently massaged his ribs in the place where he had been kicked, tenderly feeling if any were broken. "I'm going to Soul Society tonight to talk to Yamato-taichou. I don't know how well our conversation will go over, but I promise you that I _am_ fighting for Karin," his voice rang sharp with conviction and his eyes dared Ichigo to contradict him.

"I'm coming with you."

"You can't. This may be out of Yamato's control; the Central 46 could be controlling Karin's fate in which case…" his voice trailed off ominously. "If you lose your temper, there could be serious consequences that make things even worse for Karin. However, I will find a way for you to come tomorrow. Trust me on this."

Ichigo turned away to look up at the stars shining brightly down upon them. When at last he spoke his voice had none of the anger from before, and instead was full of sadness and regret. "Protect her please, Hitsugaya. I can't let her go, not yet at least. She means too much…"

"I'll do my best," he replied. With those words it felt as if a weight had been placed upon his shoulders making everything, even walking, seem more strenuous. He had a commitment not only to Ichigo, but also to himself to protect Karin. Fist clenched in determination, he walked away from Ichigo and back towards Urahara's shop where he would leave for Soul Society.

Hitsugaya swept down the hallway of the first squad barracks; his posture and movements seemed to ring out his sense of purpose.

"H-Hitsugaya-taichou!" the shinigami stationed outside of the captain's quarters exclaimed as he saw the approaching figure. "Yamato-taichou told me to be ready for your arrival tomorrow. What are you doing back early?"

Hitsugaya glared at the man, his icy stare making the man regret asking about the captain's business. "I need to speak to Yamato."

"He's asleep right now, but I'm sure tomorrow because you are a captain…"

"It's urgent. Wake him, please," despite the words being so polite, the tone his voice showed his growing impatience at the man's behavior.

"I-I can't do that, Taichou. He s-said that he didn't want anyone disturbing him," his eyes flew open in fear as Hitsugaya's finger lightly traced the decorations on the handle of Hyourinmaru. But before he could say or do anything else, the captain's door slid open to reveal Yamato, his face as impassive as ever.

"Hitsugaya-taichou, you are supposed to be arriving tomorrow with the Visored."

"We need to have a captain's meeting before I do so," Hitsugaya's voice was as steady as he could manage, but he couldn't help but feel doubt creeping into his stomach. Pulling a stunt like this could have very high consequences in the shinigami world. Thinking of Karin though, his resolve tightened and his eyes narrowed in determination.

"It's the middle of the night. Is this really necessary?"

"Yes. It concerns Ichigo and the Visored. There has been a complication."

"Very well," Yamato conceded, motioning to his attendant. "Dispatch the message: captain's meeting in 15 minutes."

The man nodded, and vanished from sight.

"Shall we?" Yamato asked, turning to watch Hisugaya.

"Go ahead without me; I just need to do one thing first," he replied, before turning on his heel and hurrying down the maze of hallways towards the fifth squads barracks. He rushed into the vice captain's room, glad for once that Hinamori didn't want an attendant outside her room when she slept, and shook her shoulders to wake her.

"Shiro-chan?" she asked, sitting up and rubbing the sleep from her eyes. "What are you doing here so late?"

"I just want you to know that I might be gone for a little while. I just want you to tell Granny that I love her. And of course, you know that I love you."

"I love you, too, Shiro-chan. Where are you going?"

"I'm going to stand up for what I believe in…"

"What do you mean? Shiro, what's going on? Are you in trouble?" she asked, the grogginess in her voice evident. She struggled to sit up fully to wake herself up more.

"Everything is going to be okay, Hinamori. Don't worry," he gently comforted her, resting his hands on her shoulders to stop her from sitting up. "But I really have to go now, we have a captain's meeting and I can't be late for it," he said as he tried forcing a smile.

"Alright. Bye, Shiro-chan," she said smiling back at him.

"Bye, Hinamori," he replied, standing up to stride across the room and exit quietly. As he slid the door closed behind him, his brows furrowed. He really shouldn't have gone to visit her, but he had no idea what was going to happen at this meeting. Besides, seeing his "sister" always calmed his nerves, and he really did need to tell her loved her once more.

Hurrying back towards the main building, he saw Ukitake-taichou walking slowly across the wooden flooring. Hitsugaya quickly caught up with him, and politely smiled as he slid open the door to the captain's meeting. They entered and took their respective places.

"Now that all the captains are gathered we can begin," Captain Commander Yamato addressed the waiting captains, looking at each expectant face. "Hitsugaya-taichou is the one who has asked me to call this meeting, so I will let him speak."

All eyes turned to look at Hitsugaya, and had he not been so determined he might have blushed, especially when Mayori grumbled, "he could have picked a more convenient meeting time."

Ignoring the complaint, Hitsugaya addressed the group. "As you know, I was sent to the Real World to investigate some unusual reaitsu that had been reported by a shinigami stationed in Karakura Town. I have found that the source is a Visored; her name is Kurosaki Karin." He paused a murmur ran throughout the group. "As you can imagine, this could cause severe problems depending upon our punishment for Karin. We have already seen what Ichigo can do when he is protecting the ones he loves. For example, he stopped the execution of Kuchiki Rukia with ease. If we are to harm his sister, who is to say that he won't attack Soul Society?"

"We can take him," Kenpachi laughed, brushing off the severity of the situation. A few of the other captains nodded in agreement, but it was clear that some considered Ichigo to be a threat.

"Obviously one shinigami won't overthrow Soul Society, but he is strong enough to make his mark. Especially with the help of his father, Kurosaki Isshin, and some of his powerful friends, including Urahara Kisuke," Hitsugaya pressed.

"Two former captains and an angry teenager who is probably stronger than the both of them…" Unohana's quiet voice trailed off.

"Now we all know Ichigo would be boneheaded enough to attack Soul Society, but would Urahara and Isshin really come with him?" Soifon asked, the doubt clear in her voice.

"There is chance that both of them will come. They have their motives: obviously, Isshin to support his son and avenge his daughter; Urahara to rid himself of his guilt of betraying a young girl to Soul Society."

"They know the power of Soul Society though, so would they be willing to sacrifice their lives?"

"We won't be able to know until tomorrow. If this is a gamble that the majority of captains are willing to take then we will not differ from the original plan."

"Well what do you propose as action?" Ukitake asked.

"We could assure Ichigo that his sister will be taken into Soul Society and held in a special facility to contain the Hollow until we figure a way to get it out of her."

"Central 46 will be in charge of her punishment, so we can't make such promises to him," the Captain Commander stated.

Hitsugaya felt his stomach drop as he lost hope of reducing Karin's punishment to anything less than imprisonment for life or death. "There's nothing else we can do then, besides bring Ichigo with us tomorrow when we submit Karin before the Central 46. Hopefully, we will be able to talk him out of any reckless behavior." His brow furrowed as he thought of this alternative, unhappily acknowledging that there was nothing he could do.

"Do we know what degree of punishment the Central 46 will decide the Visored deserves?" Kyoraku asked.

"Deserves?" Hitsugaya asked quietly. He could feel the rage building in his veins: anger against Soul Society and anger against himself for not being able to do anything to stop it. "Do you really think that an innocent 12 year old girl deserves to suffer from becoming a Visored? Does she deserve to have a room full of strangers decide whether events outside of her control are serious enough to have her executed?" Hitsugaya spat bitterly.

If anyone's mind had been wandering from the conversation, their attention was suddenly brought back. It was so unlike the typically calm, reserved, and regulation upholding Hitsugaya lose his cool like this. He could feel everyone eye's watching him in surprise, but he couldn't take the words back now that he had said them.

"She killed a girl," Byuakua spoke, his voice cold and emotionless.

"It wasn't premeditative; she didn't even chose kill the girl. It was accidental and happened in her struggle to suppress the inner Hollow," Hitsugaya defended Karin, making everyone stare even harder at him, wondering what was causing him to act so out of character.

"Manslaughter," he coolly countered.

"Accusing her of manslaughter doesn't make what we are doing any more right! This isn't an eye for an eye; we are _choosing_ to take her life! It's not right!" Hitsugaya exclaimed, regretting the words before he spoke them but was unable to stop them from tumbling out of his mouth. It was an unwritten rule as a captain to never directly criticize Soul Society, yet Hitsugaya had anyways. He could feel the eyes of all the captains upon his back, seemingly burning holes in his body. There was a long pause, and finally when he couldn't take it anymore he broke it.

"I should get back to the Real World. I need to summon Ichigo and make sure that the Visored is ready to travel," he said carefully, making sure to call Karin 'the Visored' instead of by her name.

Yamato nodded solemnly. "You are dismissed."

Before anyone else had time to say or do anything, Hitsugaya 'shunpo'ed from the room, the anger and adrenaline still running though his body. But as he moved farther away from the hall, he could feel it slowly drain to be replaced by another emotion: anxiety. With the future as uncertain as his, Ichigo's, and Karin's it was hard not to panic.

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So what did you think? Leave a comment telling me what you thought! OR you can message me. Thanks!

I think that there will be two more chapters before it finishes, so look forward to that. :)


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